Skin problems :(

[Saltecaramelpretzels23]

I’m having some skin troubles and wondered if anyone had any tips or a good skincare routine they could share? My skin looks so dull and and tired all the time, it’s awful. I’m only 23 and my friends have glowing, dewy skin and mine looks so miserable compared to there’s. I’ve got some spots and pimples and absolutely giant pores down my cheeks- this is the main thing I hate about my skin and want to reduce. Overall i would say my skin is dry but does get very greasy as the day goes on. I’m extremely pale, so any slight imperfection on my skin shows up quite obviously eg even slight darkness under eyes look very dark. I sometimes put on fake tan which seems to make my skin look a bit better

ive stopped wearing make up everyday apart from a bit of concealer, moisturiser and a little dusting of powder to control the grease. Stopping wearing foundation has helped it look better but it still looks a bit dull.

i try to drink at least 2 litres of water everyday and exercise everyday. I sleep for 8+ hours a night. I use simple for moisturiser and for a cleanser and I’ve just started using cetaphil

Where am I going wrong??? Why is my skin like dull leather with giant pores instead of the healthy dewy skin my friends have?? 😥

I'd say 90% of this is the difference between getting 6" from the mirror and inspecting your flaws in harsh lighting and looking at your friends who you love and only seeing the positives. 10% is probably genetics!

But there are potentially things you can do - have you tried plugging your specific concerns into something like the regime builder on the Ordinary? Or having a consultation with a dermatologist or something?

One thing to always bear in mind is you are your own worst critic - my skin is crap, oily spotty and rubbish. But I've been complimented on it by other people!!

Do you exfoliate?

I'd use CeraVe wash and CeraVe moisturiser and noting else for 3 weeks and see if there's an improvement.

It might be your gut health, I find my skin clears up a lot when I take my probiotics, and get worse again when I go through a forgetful phase.

Could you afford a really good facial with microdermabrasion? That really helped my problem skin. Use a tinted moisturiser with a bit of bronzer for daytime. And whilst I do use a sunscreen I do like a bit of sun on my face. Just not too much.